Ever tried to memorize a script?
No matter how hard you try, you always forget something or you flub your lines.
Cue cards don’t seem to help much either. They get out of order. You worry you’re spending too much time looking at your cards instead of the audience. Looking down and trying to find your place makes you nervous.
The best way to memorize a speech is simpler than you might think.
It doesn’t involve endless hours of practice.
It doesn’t involve writing out talking points on the back of your hand or on cue cards.
And it does help you to speak to your audience confidently, naturally, with a steady voice.
The trick to remembering your speech
The rule of threes applies to memorizing your speech.
Firstly, there are three steps:
- Understand your topic deeply
- Understand what outcome is required
- Create an outline
Topic -> Outcome -> Outline = TOO
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1. Understand your topic deeply
The first key to remembering your speech is to understand your topic well.
Think about it like this: if you know your topic well you’ll be able to easily talk about the speech matter, even if you forget your place.
As long as you can talk about your topic, even if you forget your place the audience won’t notice. This knowledge should instantly make your speech more natural and boost your confidence.
2. Understand what outcome is required
Knowing your topic well can be a blessing and a curse.
It’s a blessing because it helps us to deliver a more natural and confident speech.
It’s a curse because we often assume the audience has more knowledge than they do. We know our topic so well that we assume too much background knowledge on the audience’s part and we don’t share enough detail with them.
Deciding what outcome is required from your speech helps you to deliver the right amount of information to your audience to lead them to that outcome.
3. Create an outline
Now that you understand your topic well and know what outcome you need it’s time to create an outline.
Remember the rule of threes?
We use the rule of threes when we create our outline as well.
Sit down with a piece of paper and create a mind map.
In the center of the paper write the outcome you require.
Around the outcome map out three main points (or less) you need to talk about to reach that outcome.
For example:
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Outcome required: Get sales people to adopt newly introduced selling practices
Point 1: Our company’s terrible sales performance last year
Point 2: The new practices that have been developed to close sales more quickly
Point 3: Sales increase forecasts for the coming year
You mind map now becomes an easy to remember blueprint for what you need to say in your presentation.
Summary
Follow the rule of threes for the best way to memorize your speech:
- Understand your topic deeply
- Understand what outcome is required
- Create an outline
Topic -> Outcome -> Outline (3 main outline points) = TOO3
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Thanks for this no-nonsense approach to remembering a presentation speech. I love the rule of 3’s. It has power and magic. And, the acronym, TOO is great as well.
Cheers Louis!
Dave, great article and I also love the rule of 3. However I prefer not to memorize speeches. I think if you are clear on your message, clear on what your audience wants and have 3 or 4 key stories that illustrate your points, then you should be able to present extemporaneously without the need to memorize your speech. It becomes more of a mind map that you follow as you present.
Hi Peter, I totally agree! Memorization creates far more problems than it solves. Being clear on your message and having a simple mind map to follow means the presenter can deliver far more naturally. Thanks for your comment!
Could not have said it any better – good job!
I’m not a proponent of trying to memorize a speech. Speakers who do that tend to appear inauthentic and overly rehearsed. These are the same speakers who can’t make adjustments to their speech if there are time constraints (for example, if the moderator tells you that you need to cut your talk by 10 minutes due to scheduling issues) or if the speaker before them have covered similar points. Instead, I memorize talking points; much like you suggest and can pivot and discuss a variety of relevant themes related to those talking points. This approach has served me well for years and has allowed me to connect more meaningfully with my audience.
Great tips. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Dave,
Very helpful article… Thanks..
Actually between the lines you suggest “know your speech by heart” instead of memorizing. Am I right?
Kind regards
hasan
Hi Hasan,
Thanks for your feedback.
I wouldn’t recommend “knowing by heart” as that suggests knowing it perfectly. I would suggest knowing your subject in-depth so you can talk about it as though you know it by heart.
I always relate it to regular social conversation. When you are talking to a friend you don’t talk “perfectly” but you “fluidly” because you know what you want to say and you know the subject you are talking about in-depth.
Cheers,
Dave
The best way I can remember a speech or lecture is by drawing sketches of what I’m talking about. Then associate those sketches with positions in the room and specific people in the audience. Then I rehearse while standing, walking, and gesturing.
When I get to an audience, I may miss a word or two. But my audience wouldn’t notice that unless I bring it up.
I really like this approach, Chris. Image-related stuff is so much easier to remember than text.